I recently caught up with a friend who I had not talked to for a while and it was a good catch-up. During this time, she said one thing that’s stuck in my head because I’ve been wondering the same thing for a while.. she said that everyone was selfish and that nobody ever did anything for no reason.
As part of my series of self-reflection and improvement over the past year or so, I’ve been working on Open Honesty. I’ve never been a very good liar, at least to other people so for them, it means, not hiding or avoiding telling the truth. I am however, a very good liar when it comes to myself and I think that being brutally honest about myself to myself is an important step to growing as a person.
One of those honest truths I must question is whether or not I am motivated by selfish intentions. Is it a silly question to ask? I believe it’s important to understand your motivations. You may think it’s a strange thing for me to be thinking considering I spent two years in Africa and my upcoming Birthday Sale, but I think that these things make it even more vital to question why I am doing these things? I can‘t deny that I get a sense of accomplishment and satisfaction from being able to help people.. is that selfish?
All wise teachings and all religions point to this ultimate goal – Being truly self-less and loving unconditionally. Agape Love. I wonder if I am capable of this kind of altruism, Can I help someone without expecting anything in return? can I love someone even if I know they won’t reciprocate that love? would I be able to sacrifice my time, my money, my heart, or my life for someone that doesn’t appreciate it? I’d like to think that I am capable of it.. but perhaps that’s just another lie I tell myself. What do you think?
The real question is not for me but for you and society in general. Is this something you aspire to? is it one of your personal goals? or am I being much too idealistic in believing that this is something that everyone is capable of? I think we all felt bad when we heard the news about Dan Carter being out of the world cup.. the question is, did you feel bad for yourself because it meant your team would have a harder time winning the world cup now without him? or did you feel bad for him, because he had worked so hard and now would miss out because of the serious injury? I have to admit, my first reaction was about the All Blacks.. but then I realised what it must mean for him personally and how guttered he must be.
I still like to believe in the moral integrity of the human race, as misplaced and misguided our actions might be. If we are capable of the ugly crimes and destruction that we see on the news, we must be equally capable of truly inspirational love. What about a mother’s love? or a friend’s loyalty? a lover’s acceptance? I remember that I once told someone I thought that we were ultimately driven by selfish intentions and now I’d have no problems is someone wanted to prove me wrong. Preferably many times, just to make a point 
Posted by yongly 
